R.I.P.

Slayer Guitarist Jeff Hanneman Dies

Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman died Thursday at age 49. The cause of death was liver failure. Hanneman had recently taken a break from touring due to liver disease, which his bandmates said he contracted after a spider bite. In a Facebook post, his bandmates said Hanneman had been “in really, really bad shape” since the 2010 spider bite. Slayer was formed in the early ’80s, and Hanneman had been famous for his furious guitar solos and power chords. Slayer went on to be among the Los Angeles area’s “big four” of thrash-metal groups, along with Megadeth, Metallica, and Anthrax.